An Island Called Mistletoe
by faithbrownmusic
Summary: June doesn't want to visit her family during the holidays. So upon meeting the Doctor in an airport, she is more than happy to escape with him to a strange island called Mistletoe. But when things take a turn for the worst, the pair must escape before they become the village's dinner.
1. Chapter 1

June wasn't a fan of flying, so when the airline attendants asked for volunteers to delay their flight until tomorrow and stay the night in Dallas, June was the first to volunteer. Sure, it was New Year's Eve, but she wasn't all that excited about heading home. Holidays only reminded her of the family that she never spoke to, except on prized occasion. They weren't close at all and she didn't mind it being that way. Her parents knew how to do two things perfectly: talk and talk loudly. They had divorced when she was 16, and both remarried. Her mother married a loud stock market broker, and her father married a loud correctional facilities officer. Not only were they loud, but her stepparents were OBNOXIOUS. They had strong opinions about everything, strong opinions June didn't agree with. When she would confront her biological parents about this, they would simply tell her to be nice to her stepparents. It didn't help that each of her parents had new children with their new spouses. No, she was not looking forward to another Christmas in which she felt like the odd girl out.

"Still need volunteers?" She asked the gray haired lady at the front desk.

"Sure! Sure! Sorry about the delays. We've just had a rush of people. Holidays, y'know. Going home?"

"Yeah." June replied smugly. The gray lady smelled a bit too much like perfume.

"Oh! Well, then I bet you'll be happy to board the first plane out tomorrow morning. Just wait a sec."

"Please . . . take your time."

As the lady typed furiously on her keyboard, June looked around at the passengers sitting on or around the black terminal chairs. A little girl was playing peek-a-boo with her young mother, a business man wearing a full suit with a black suitcase stood up, already waiting in line to board the plane, continuously glancing down at his golden watch. A young couple sat holding hands, a large family of six in matching t-shirts reading "Happy New Year" stood in line right behind the business man, obviously annoying him with their loud talking.

In the corner of the room, right by the large plethora of windows, a young man in a brown suit and bowtie sat reading a newspaper upside down, occasionally looking up at the people, eyeing them suspiciously. Weird. Kind of creepy.

"Here ya go ma'am," the lady said, handing June a travel brochure, ticket, and her stipend to stay the night in the city. "Have a nice night here in Dallas."

"Thanks." June grabbed her small overnight bag and walked toward the Starbucks across from the desk.

Suddenly, she heard a scream and looked behind her. The bow-tie man was pointing a strange screwdriver with a bright blue light coming from it at the little girl who was playing peek-a-boo with her mother. Except, the mother had suddenly vanished out of thin air.


	2. Chapter 2

"So you've found me. Congratulations." The little girl laughed, twiddling her thumbs playfully. What was going on? Was she his daughter? If so, why was he pointing a screwdriver at her? It was bewildering. The other passengers stared in awe at the odd pair.

"I suspected that you'd think flying was the best means of travel. Your kind has always enjoyed torturing victims in the air."

"What did this man mean by _your kind,_" June wondered. She was just a little girl.

"Ha! These pathetic humans don't even know what it means to be tortured, to be thrown into a prison on a planet with toxic air. I'm simply raising their awareness." The little girl's voice was sounding stranger, deeper even. And was June imagining things or was she starting to grow taller, with green skin?

"I'd think you were clever, except that there's one little problem: You have to get past me." The bow-tied man replied.

"Just try and stop me." The little girl suddenly transformed into a tall, green monster-like thing with bulging muscles and scaly skin. She (it?) lashed out its' bony hand at the bow-tied man, threatening to throw him. He barely dodged it. The creature growled. It continued running after the man. He continually dodged its' blows and razor sharp teeth, running around the terminal, crouching behind chairs and even the desk June had just walked from. Passengers were screaming, running away in terror.

Suddenly, the creature finally managed to throw the bow-tied man's screwdriver out of his hand, causing it to slide across the shiny tiles, right next to June's feet. She watched as the man lifted up his hands in surrender, watching the green creature walking toward his face, about to pounce. The man looked at June for just a second.

She looked down at the screwdriver, the blue light from it still glowing. While bending down to pick it up, she heard the man speak, "Okay. You've got me. Look how clever you are. But, if someone was really clever, they would look at my screwdriver, point it towards you, and press the little button that's next to the thing-a-ma-bob at the top. Of course, I couldn't do that because I don't have it. It's useless for me, but not if someone were to have it. Impossible for me though!"

"Very clever indeed. Any last words, Doctor?" The creature drew closer to the man, grinning its' sharp teeth.

June quickly looked at the screwdriver and found a small button at the top of it. Pointing it towards the creature, she pressed the button and the creature stopped in its tracks. It looked down at the man confused.

"Now that's clever." The man replied.

Then, the creature exploded into a million fine gooey and green pieces, covering the floor, walls, and chairs of the terminal, not leaving either the man or June unscathed.


	3. Chapter 3

June stared at the place where the creature once stood in awe. The man wiped the goo from his eyes and walked towards June, grabbing the screwdriver from her hands. She continued staring at the place in awe. The man mumbled something and then waved his hands across June's eyes, trying to catch her attention. She looked at him.

"I said thank you for that."

She looked into his eyes. "WHAT WAS THAT?!" She yelled, causing him to jump a bit.

"Um, that was . . ." he struggled for words. " . . . A bit of . . . an interference."

"An interference?!" She continued yelling. "That was a monster. A real life monster."

"Actually, not a monster, still sorry to see it come here though," He somewhat apologized. "Well, I better be off." He began walking quickly away from June, almost running.

She stood looking at him, still mesmerized. Then, she began to follow him, walking through the now empty terminal.

"So, you're just going to walk away? You're not going to pick anything up?"

A janitorial group passed them with buckets, heading in the direction of the monster explosion.

"Aha! Looks like I don't need to." He took out the weird screwdriver from his pocket and pointed it towards a door that said "No Admittance." It opened, revealing a closet sized room with a big blue telephone box in it. It was . . . glowing.

"What is this?" June asked.

"This is my TARDIS." He exclaimed, showing it off as if he was selling something on an infomercial.

"What do you do with it?"

"Whatever you want. It's a bit of a time traveling thing. Lots of big words. Very complicated business."

June was getting more confused by the minute. First a mons – except, he said it was _not _a monster . . .

"What did you say that thing was back there? The big green thing?"

"Hmmm? Oh! That's a Fsinx. Ugly creatures. Well, obviously. At least, to me. Not my type at all. They mate a lot though so maybe not everyone thinks they're ugly. They're known for being obsessed with flying."

All of this was making June's head spin.

"But, what is it?"

"In simple human terms, an alien." The man seemed to find June amusing.

"An alien? Like, a real alien?"

"A _real_ alien." He was now turning his back towards June to open the door of the giant blue box, revealing a room - a huge room full of weird devices and stairs and some sort of strange contraption in the middle of it.

He walked into the room. June followed reluctantly, turning her head around to see that outside people were beginning to pass by, completely unaware of the phenomenon happening inside the actual closet. She laughed.

"Do I get three wishes or what?" She said quite confidently.

"Three wishes?" The man was obviously confused.

"Yeah. I mean, you're a genie right? I get three wishes."

He looked at her, horrified. "Do I look like a genie? Genies have big heads and small noses. They're from Genieland! Do I look like I'm from Genieland? Don't be ridiculous. They're not even that generous. Ha! Three wishes."

"Well, what are you?"

"I'm the Doctor." He said this matter-of-factly without a hint of irony.

June chuckled. "A doctor? What kind of doctor then? An alien doctor? Is this like Men in Black?"

The Doctor grinned. "Yes, I guess you could say I'm like an alien doctor. But not really. I'm a time lord. I travel through space and time."

Everything was happening so fast. June didn't know if she could stand it. What was she doing standing in the middle of a strange room with a strange man? This was not the ideal situation to be in. Her mother would be extremely disappointed. Oh yeah . . . her mother. She suddenly remembered how much she didn't want to go home.

"Are you okay?" The Doctor asked. He could see her drifting off.

"Yeah. So, this thing goes anywhere?"

"Anywhere!" He started pushing buttons and turning knobs. Then, he stopped and looked at June. "Fancy a trip?"

"Me?" She looked around. It was indeed a large room, but something about it made her feel safe. And why not? She didn't have anything to do in Dallas. She certainly did not want to head to her parents' houses for New Year's.

"Okay." What was she doing? This didn't seem like a bright idea, but then again, her stepparents were like aliens to her already. She might as well go visit some real ones.

"Okay? So you don't think I'm a creepy old man trying to kill you? You just . . . trust me?" He seemed a little thrown off.

"You don't look old or creepy. I don't know. If you wanted to kill me, wouldn't you have already?"

"Maybe."

Okay. So maybe he was a little scary. But, there was something about him that seemed exciting!

"I'll bring you back in time for New Year's." He was now pushing more buttons and turning more knobs than before.

"Don't worry about it." She said.

Before the big room started shaking violently, June noticed the Doctor looking at her with a sort of sad look in his eyes, as if he knew she was avoiding something. But, he couldn't possibly. Right?

"Where are we going?" She asked while holding onto rails as to not lose her balance.

"It's a surprise!" He exclaimed joyfully.


	4. Chapter 4

The TARDIS moved wildly before making a sudden stop, catapulting June across the floor.

"Ouch!" She cried as she rubbed her now hurt elbow. The Doctor ran quickly to her and crouched down.

"Did that hurt?"

"What do you think?" June whined sarcastically.

"Well, I guess it takes a bit of getting used to. It's been awhile since I've had strangers in this old place. The last were with me for a-"

"Do you mean to say that you do that _often_?"

He took a moment to smile amusingly before saying, "All the time." Then, he offered his hand, which she clung to willingly with her non-hurting arm. He helped pick her up off the floor and walked away towards the door. June thought this was very rude, as he didn't even offer her time to rest. What sort of man was this? She followed hurriedly so she wouldn't be left alone.

What lay outside of the blue box surprised June greatly. There were palm trees everywhere, and right before her eyes was a blue floor . . . no, not a blue floor; it was an ocean! They were on an island from the looks of it. "How did she get here?' She wondered. She turned to the Doctor, looking to him for direction. "You weren't kidding. You actually have a _time machine_, at least, some sort of teleportation device. I mean, WE'RE ON A FREAKIN ISLAND."

"Not just any island either. This is an island on the planet Mistletoe."

"Mistletoe? Is that a joke?"

"Hey! People like mistletoe. What's wrong with it? I once had a very peculiar experience with a nun and a hobbit under mistletoe. Bit of a peach though, that nun was. Sassy."

June didn't know whether that was a joke or if he was being serious. She smirked anyway.

"So, this is another planet then? Like, in the universe? Near mars or something?"

"Oh no! We're not near Mars at all. Take a left at Saturn, go on for a few light years, a right, right, left, jump, and straight on, that's us."

"Oh . . . makes sense. What do we do now?"

The Doctor smiled, "Care to go for a dip?"

June returned his smile. "Last one in is a rotten egg." Then, taking off her enormous coat, shoes, socks, and rolling up her pants, she ran into the ocean, the water filling up not further than her knees. The Doctor followed closely behind, tossing his brown tweed jacket on the white sand.

"If I would've known we'd end up here then I would've brought a bathing suit." June exclaimed, splashing the water around her knees.

In the distance, the Doctor thought he saw a figure lurking in the shadows behind the palm trees, watching the pair dance around in the sea. It drew closer and closer until the Doctor could not ignore it any longer. It looked to be hiding behind the TARDIS itself, its' gray eyes watching them closely.

"Get out!" The Doctor suddenly yelled to June, running out of the water to the TARDIS.

June panicked, running quickly out of the water, afraid there was some sort of shark or jellyfish near her.

The Doctor reached the TARDIS, but the figure had disappeared.

"What's wrong?" June asked.

The Doctor simply looked on towards the trees. After a few minutes of silence and observation, the figure moved, passing a tree in the near distance. The Doctor walked closer.

"Don't be afraid. I'm not here to hurt you." The Doctor coaxed.

The figure moved closer, continually hiding behind the trees.

"What is it?" June asked, somewhat afraid.

"I don't know." The Doctor answered, truthfully.

Finally, the Doctor reached the tree that the figure hid behind. It was shaking out of fear.

"Hello?" The Doctor waved.

The figure came out in full view, revealing that it wasn't just any figure at all, but a little girl about the age of 10, with brown skin and long hair up to her waist. She had big gray eyes, and a petite figure, which only made her eyes look bigger. She was barefoot and wore a skirt and shirt that looked like she had made them herself. June suddenly felt compassion for the girl.

"Are you okay?" June asked, offering her hand.

The little girl eyed June suspiciously, and then stared at her hand. "I'm June, this is the Doctor," she explained, speaking slowly so the little girl might understand them. "Do you think she speaks English?" June whispered to the Doctor.

"Doesn't matter. The TARDIS translates languages."

"What?!"

The little girl interrupted their conversation with a small, shy voice. "Cider." She was still staring at June's outstretched hand. June noticed and put it awkwardly to her side, realizing the little girl was not going to shake it.

"Cider. What a pretty name. Do you live here?" June smiled.

The little girl giggled at June's question. "Yes."

The Doctor pulled June back a bit and whispered, "The people on this planet don't believe there are other planets to discover. They have no way to travel, so they live and die here. This is it for them."

"So, they've never seen anything else? There aren't other islands?"

"Afraid not. This planet is about the size of Hawaii."

June stared incredulously at the little girl, her heart filled with pity.

"You from there?" Cider asked, pointing towards the sea.

"Something like that." June answered.

Cider's eyes lit up. "You come to my house!" She grabbed their hands and whisked them off through the forest, beyond rivers and lakes. On the way, they passed many small huts. People began to gather outside to stare at them, whispering about the "strange sea people." Cider no longer seemed like the shy, little girl at the shore, but walked boldly through the village, escorting her guests to a small hut made of mud, with a roof made of palms. June and the Doctor seemed to enjoy being the center of attention.

"You stay here." Cider told them, stopping in front of the hut. Then, she took a breath before walking into it alone. The Doctor and June looked around at their environment. A crowd of children with big, gray eyes just like Ciders' surrounded them.

"So, these are aliens?" June asked. A small boy approached, finding the courage to touch her faded blue jeans. The boy giggled. A group of other children walked to her and touched her blue jeans and red blouse. Another group started touching the Doctor's clothes, and pulled him down to where they could touch his hair.

"Technically, you're the alien." The Doctor corrected.

"Oh, right."

Suddenly, Cider came out. "Shooo!" She told the little boys and girls, who were the same size as her. "Go! Mine! I catch them." She looked up at June and smiled, holding her hand. June laughed nervously.

The children all ran to their huts quickly, giggling the whole way. Some of the adults stood by the front doors of their own huts, viewing the spectacle, calling their children. Some of them were frightened of the newcomers and alerted their neighbors.

Cider led June and the Doctor into her own hut. June was surprised by what was inside. There on the floor lay an old woman, nearing death.

At first, June didn't even know the old woman was alive. She had brown skin and big gray eyes just like Ciders'. Except, she was deathly thin and looked like she hadn't eaten in a very long time. She had a huge scar all up her left arm, where an incision had been made perhaps. Two huge and thick blankets made of palms covered her body on the dirt floor, which June thought odd considering how it couldn't have been less than 90 degrees outside. Yet, the old lady was shivering.

Cider bent down to the lady and whispered something in her ear. The lady nodded her head "yes."

"This is mama. See?" Cider pointed.

June nodded and walked closer; the Doctor merely stood watching from the doorway.

"I'm June," June explained, pointing to herself. "And this is the Doctor. It's very nice to meet you. Thank you for letting us in your home."

Mama reached out her right hand off the floor and June accepted it gratefully, Mama's small, cold bony fingers grasping onto June's wrist. "You are special, yes? You stay for dinner?" Her voice was weak and scraggly.

"We would love to stay." June answered, softening her voice because, well, it just felt right in such a dark place.

The hut was in the shape of a circle about the size of June's kitchen back home. And she lived in a humble apartment. The floor was covered in rags and dirt. A few clay jars stood near the entrance, which had a door made of tree branches. Altogether, there was not much in the hut and it could barely fit all four of them.

Outside of the hut, a loud gong sounded. June didn't seem to notice, but the Doctor's head turned to the sound's general direction. "I'll just be right off then." He left.

June turned to Cider. "Who lives here?"

"It is me, papa, mama, and little sister."

"Where is your papa?"

"He is fishing. He find food for family." Cider seemed to be proud of this answer and nodded approvingly.

"And your mama?" June turned back to face the lady on the floor, who was now breathing in deeply, her chest rising high and then exhaling long, slow breaths.

"She is sick. Big storm come. Crash. Crash. Boom. Boom." Cider animated with her skinny hands. "No food."

"You have no food? You haven't eaten?"

The Doctor walked into the hut and motioned for June to meet him outside.

"Excuse me," June stood up and followed the Doctor out of the hut. He drew her close to him. "These people haven't eaten for days. I spoke with some of the others and they said all the fish in the sea have fled. They've just . . . disappeared. Their whole livelihood is in the ocean and it's gone."

"It can't all be." June now noticed that the other villagers seemed sickly thin, the children walking slowly, some looking faint. They needed food. "Well, we can feed them can't we?" A horn sounded in the distance. The children hurried to where the sound was coming from. Women came out of their huts, some carrying pots, some clay jars. Then, June saw them – a herd of fierce looking men, in little clothing, walking towards them, and in their hands, holding spears.


	5. Chapter 5

At first, June was frightened, but then realized that these men must be the ones fishing in the ocean. They walked through the village with sunken faces and empty nets. It was another bad day for fishing. Some of the children began to cry. Women gathered the children in their arms to comfort them.

Cider walked to a tanned and burly man with long, thick black hair. "Papa!" He picked her up in his arms. "I find people. They come from big sea."

The man's eyes lit up, suddenly noticing June and the Doctor standing by His hut. He walked slowly towards them, as if not sure they were safe. "Is this true?" His voice was deep, sounding very wise.

"Yes. I'm the Doctor, this is June. Pleasure to meet you here. Lovely weather you all have. Of course, after being knee deep in snow for a few days, a bit of sun is always welcome."

The man looked confused. "What is snow?"

"Oh! It's nothing really. Much too cold."

"They stay for dinner, Papa!" Cider giggled in her father's arms. He smiled. "Good! Good! I am leader. You must follow me." Before putting Cider down, he looked at her hopefully, "Mama?" Cider looked down in defeat. He paused a bit, then put Cider down. "Wait here," He commanded June and the Doctor. Then, after going inside the hut for a minute, he came out again with a serious demeanor. June was surprised at the lack of emotion on his face. Instead of being sad, he looked like he was going to do something . . . something dangerous. He then escorted June and the Doctor through the village, passing crying children whose eyes now lit up as they passed. Some of the men followed them, still holding their spears and nets.

"Doctor, I know we said we'd stay for dinner, but what are these people going to eat exactly?" June asked, trying to keep up with Papa's quick pace.

"Um . . . good question. I'm afraid I already know the answer." Then turning to a man with an empty net in his hand, the Doctor asked, "What are we going to eat exactly?"

The man looked at him happily, "Sea people."

The Doctor smiled reluctantly then turned to June. "We're eating sea people."

"Sea people? Isn't that us? Aren't WE the sea people?!"

"I do believe so. This is fun isn't it?"

"Fun?! Are you crazy? I just wanted to enjoy a nice vacation away from my family and now I'm going to be eaten! Fun? This is not my idea of fun!" June was getting hysterical. A young girl in the following crowd gave the Doctor a flower. He thanked her and put it in his hair.

"Ah! Don't you just love this village? I think they love us too. Well, I mean they think we're from the ocean so obviously nothing can come out of the ocean unless it's food but still . . . "

"Love them? You think I love people who are going to eat me?! Please tell me you have a plan."

June, the Doctor, and the crowd were now in front of a large pile of wood. A large clay pot hung on top it, being suspended by a horizontal piece of string.

"They're not going to put us in there, are they?!" June exclaimed. The Doctor simply looked like he was having a wonderful time being the center of attention, and didn't seem to notice that June was hyperventilating.

"I know it looks bad, but we can just run at any time." The Doctor grabbed June's shaking hand and walked towards a group of children, as if to cut through them and escape. Men with spears and nets walked in front of them, smiling fierce smiles. The crowd had now formed into an extremely large circle that surrounded them. Every villager must have been there. June looked around, trying to find Cider. If maybe she could just convince the girl that when she said she'd stay for dinner, she didn't mean to become the dinner herself. This seemed like a weak plan to June, but it was worth a shot. She couldn't think when hungry eyes were following her as if she was something to eat.

"Right. So, it looks like we can't run away." The Doctor said, sort of humorously really.

"Oh yeah? Didn't notice that back there when all those people started following us? We're going to die. I'm going to die. Oh no. Nobody is going to know how I died. They're going to think I disappeared in Dallas, that I got kidnapped. I'm going to be a face on the news. Another missing person's case. They're going to question my family and my friends. They're going to find out that I lied about not being able to make it home on Christmas. I'm going to die on a planet in the middle of the universe!"

"Well, really, it's not the middle of the universe but that's beside the point. I think that we are going to get out of here. Leave it to me." The Doctor left June's side and walked confidently to the leader. "Eh, mate. Whaddya say to a nice game of volleyball before we eat?"

"VOLLEYBALL?! ARE YOU SERIOUS? VOLLEYBALL?" The Doctor heard June's voice yell in the background.

The leader simply smiled and put his arm around the Doctor. "You sit or stand?"

"I . . . er . . . stand? That's usually how volleyball works."

The leader nodded his head and then pulled out a knife with a wooden handle, alarming the Doctor so much that he jumped back a little.

"Oh, you must mean if I prefer sit or stand while you cut me up."

The leader nodded again. The crowd began to close in on June and the Doctor, their mouths watering, their knives and spears glittering in the little sunlight that was now peeking through the tall palm trees. The sun was setting in the distance, and for such an awful situation, it sure looked beautiful. Then, out of the crowd ran Cider to the leader, to her papa. The crowd stopped moving, waiting for their leader's permission to attack their visitors. June and the Doctor were now completely surrounded.

The leader bent down to a crying Cider. "Little one? Is it mama?" Cider, with her big gray eyes, looked up at the leader and hugged his neck tightly. Everyone watched as the two shed tears, embracing each other for dear life as if they were all they had. In the crowd, faint weeping sounded through the trees. Though June wanted to hate Cider for putting her in this position, she couldn't help but feel a little compassion for her. After looking at his face, she even noticed the Doctor with a look of pity, but then a gleam in his eye. Mouthing the words to June, they broke through the crowd, which had now spread out enough for the Doctor and June to bolt as quickly as they could.

June didn't even bother to look back at them, but heard their feet scampering and chasing. She heard the sound of spears and knives being thrown. Not knowing if she should duck or swerve, she decided to do both. And good thinking too! For she missed a spear headed straight toward her head, hitting a tree instead. Though not entirely sure if they were going in the correct direction, they ran quickly until they (very luckily) reached the shore. And wouldn't you know it, but the TARDIS was in the same spot on the beach.

June felt a thrill of hope, but just then felt a sharp pain in her hand. Looking down, she noticed bright red blood flowing from her right hand. A knife had scraped it, leaving a deep gash on it. She stopped for a second, mostly in shock, to admire the piece of work.

"Keep going! We're almost there!" The Doctor called out to her.

It was just enough to awake June from her daze and give her a dash of energy. They reached the TARDIS just in time. A crowd surrounded it, hitting the blue box loudly, almost in pain, definitely in tears.

The Doctor pressed a few buttons, turned a few knobs, and the TARDIS began to lift off. "Love it when we get out just at the last moment."

June looked at him confounded, wondering what on Earth bewitched her to go off with a stranger to a strange planet in the first place.

WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH.

The TARDIS landed in the same closet in the Dallas airport. Outside, June could hear holiday music playing and families bustle by. It was as if nobody in the world realized she had almost been eaten by aliens on another planet.

"Here we are then. Safe and sound." The Doctor danced around the TARDIS delightfully.

"So, that's just it? Life goes on as usual?" June asked, still not convinced, clutching her hand.

The Doctor walked to her, and started wrapping up her bloodied hand. "That's my life. Always has been. We could do it again . . ."

"No! Absolutely not. There is no way. I thought I was adventurous, but no. Thank you for making me realize that."

The Doctor smiled. "That's what I'm here for – the man who makes people realize things they didn't realize before."

"But, Doctor, back there . . . Cider's mother . . . "

The Doctor stopped dancing, and paused. He looked into June's questioning eyes, the ones still searching for answers. "She died."

"I thought so. There's nothing we could've done to prevent it. I mean, I thought this was a time machine and all. After all, she's just a little girl who has lost her mother."

"Everyone has to go some time." He said this with more behind his voice than June expected. His eyes began to shift around the TARDIS, as if reminiscing old stories it had told.

"Yeah. I guess."

The silence was broken by a ringing noise from June's back pocket. She seemed a bit stunned that she could receive cell phone service in a blue machine thing. The Doctor resumed dancing by himself, humming an old tune.

"Hello? Mom? Mom! Hi! I missed you. I know we just spoke earlier. I just . . . I'm glad you're my mom. Well, of course I'm okay. No, I'm not sick. No, I did not eat airplane food. Oh. Oh no I forgot that I'm staying the night in Dallas. What time is it? What? It's only been an hour? I meant an hour since . . . um . . . my flight thing . . . oh you know. I'm sorry. I really wish I could be there. Actually, let me call you back."

June eyed the dancing bow-tied man. "Um, Doctor. This place can go anywhere right?"

"Anywhere you'd like. Fancy another trip?"

"Not that kind of trip. I just . . . .I need to get home. I'd like to get home."

"Okay! That sounds wonderful! Let's go home! It's New Year's Eve you know. You wouldn't want to miss out on family time." He began twisting the knobs and pressing the odd buttons.

June laughed. "You're so ridiculous! I don't even know what to think of you anymore. But Doctor?"

"Yes?

"Do you think we could make one more stop?"


	6. Chapter 6

The citizens on a planet called Mistletoe were weeping before it happened. They had just lost what they thought was going to be their dinner, an odd pair of fish from the sea. One wore a strange thing around his neck, the other had long hair almost like their own. They hadn't eaten for days, and many were afraid. Suddenly, out of the sky, over the ocean, flew a blue box and the strange looking fish inside of it. They threw something into the water. The villagers looked at them in awe and started swimming to where they were.

A young girl named Cider followed in pursuit. Running through the warm water, she felt a brush against her legs. She looked down and noticed a shadow passing through the water. A boy near her began to cry out. The other villagers also started laughing and clapping their hands. As Cider bent down even lower, a gray fish jumped out of the water.


End file.
